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"We waited a long time to have Tommy. He was extra special. He was just a happy, smiley boy who spread joy wherever he went.

"The reality is it could have been any child leaving the town hall as there are so many who visit there."

Mrs Hollis and her husband, a pilot, had another son Jack in September and are now fundraising for a charity set up in Tommy's name.

The senior ganger, who had 17 years experience, had been working in the area to move fibre optic cables on behalf of Virgin Media, as part of a local authority project to widen the road.

The inquest heard Mr Elmore, who worked for utilities firm McNicholas Construction (Holdings) Ltd, had cut off a section of the structure’s steel support system after mistaking it for the remains of a disused tramline.

On February 23, 2010, the lamppost fell onto Tommy as he was being cared for by a nanny.

In a statement to the inquest, Mr Elmore, said he had 'absolutely no idea' his actions would have made the post less stable.

He said: “I had believed the piece of steel to be part of a tramline. I had no idea it was connected to the lamp post.

“Had I known that, I would not have continued to work in the vicinity of the lamppost myself.”

He added he was "utterly devastated to have had any involvement in the events that occurred."

He said: "As a father myself, I cannot express how horrified I am to have had any involvement with the death of a child.

"If I could take the place of that child then I would."

Mr Elmore has declined to answer questions at the hearing on the advice of his lawyer.

The inquest is being heard by a jury and is expected to last three days.

Days after Tommy's death, his parent said in a statement: ''It is with very sad hearts that we confirm the tragic death of Tommy Hollis who would have celebrated his first birthday today.

''The family is utterly devastated by the loss and thanks the community and friends for their love and prayers."

Mr Elmore was issued with a written warning finding him guilty of gross misconduct, but still works for the company.

In a statement read to the court, Tommy's nanny Anna Martin she had been pushing him in his pram on the way to Starbucks and was standing at the crossing when the lamp post fell, striking the elderly woman next to her and the pram.

She heard what sounded like "something hollow hitting something" and there was a "terrible scream", she said.

She said she pulled the pushchair back and it came off the floor because the wheels had come off, adding: "It looked like Tommy was asleep. I took him out of his pushchair and cuddled him.

"I realised a piece metal like a pipe was lying across the barriers. The woman was screaming."

Ms Martin gave Tommy mouth to mouth but didn't know what was wrong with him as his eyes were closed but it "looked like he was sleeping", she said.

Health and Safety Executive inspector Dominic Long said the post had an unusual design, found in only two per cent of lampposts in the country, and a tramline had previously run down the road.

But he added of the piece of steel Mr Elmore cut, some 18 inches from the lamppost's base: 'We did look at some tramlines and, in my opinion, it doesn't look like a section of tramline.

'We couldn't find a tramline that looked like that.'

Asked who was responsible for safety at the site, he replied: 'The London Borough of Hounslow had responsibility for that site - it was their site.'

He said the HSE had since issued a 'safety alert' to warn others about the risks of working near this type of lamppost.